Starbucks Reverses Position: “No Guns, Please.”
In a recent post on Voting With Your Wallet on gun rights, we lauded Starbucks’ use of common sense in in regard to their policy on firearm carry in their restaurants. This week, Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz issued an open letter (shown below) to the American people to “respectfully request” that customers no longer bring firearms into the 18,000 outlets it operates in 62 countries, while stopping short of an outright ban.
It may not have been a surprising outcome, however, with many gun rights advocates pushing the envelope on the company’s policy (and, perhaps, the boundaries of common sense). The company’s previous policy was to defer to the law of the land – local, state and federal laws in effect at the restaurant’s location. Thus, if the law allows concealed carry then the restaurant allowed concealed carry. If the law allows open carry, then the restaurant allowed open carry. And this is where the story starts to come off of the rails. Continue reading
Vote With Your Wallet. No, Really.
Lots of people talk about supporting gun rights, but what do you really do on a daily basis to support gun rights. Whether online, at the shooting range, in gun stores or elsewhere, we hear people complaining about things like “gun free zones,” businesses who disallow concealed carry, businesses who support anti-Second Amendment causes, etc. But how many of those people back up those words with action?
Several years ago Starbucks was thrown into the spotlight of firearms carry policy. While not exactly a champion of Second Amendment rights, Starbucks described themselves as “carry neutral” and refused to be drawn into a political debate on gun control – rather, they deferred to local, state and federal law. (UPDATE: This policy has been reversed by CEO Howard Schultz in September 2013) If concealed or open carry is legally allowed in that area, patrons were welcome to do so.
Somehow, allowing customers to abide by existing laws outraged the always-logical gun control fanatics and warmed the hearts of gun rights proponents. However, inflation and current coffee prices aside, the saying goes “that and 50 cents will get you a cup of coffee.” Despite the chatter that the situation sparked and goodwill among some in the firearms community, how many people stopped visiting other shops in favor of Starbucks?
Likewise, how many people simply grumble under their breath and Continue reading
February 8 Rally to Spread Second Amendment Message Nationwide
We first heard about the nationwide Second Amendment rally through a flyer that someone gave us at SHOT Show 2013 and now word of the rally is spreading like wildfire with more than 13,000 Facebook users confirming their attendance.
Nationwide 2nd Amendment Rally
Friday, February 8, 2013 – 10AM
At YOUR capitol building
The peaceful protest is slated to take place at every state capitol across the country on Friday, the eighth of February at 10AM at each state’s respective capitol building, although we have heard buzz that some locations have had to reschedule for various reasons (e.g. Maryland moved to February 6).
Keep spreading the word so that all Second Amendment advocates have the opportunity to attend. We’ve started a thread for the event on the GunLink Forums for users to discuss the event, arrange transportation, share information, pictures and more.
SWR, SilencerCo, Others Pull Ads from Recoil Magazine Over Comments
The latest “sporting purpose” comments over tactical weapons have sparked renewed new backlash against one firearms publication.
SWR/SilencerCo, in a recent blog posting, announced that they are pulling their ads from Recoil Magazine, stating that the have written to the editor to request that they “discontinue all scheduled advertising for both Silencerco and SWR products.”
The backlash comes after editorial comments by Recoil magazine that SWR/SilencerCo describes as “concerning the illegitimacy of a certain firearm ( and by extension, an entire class of firearms).” The text in question is as follows: Continue reading
I Am The Gun Lobby
Here is a great article from Jeff Knox written in late 2011 and making its rounds again recently thanks to a JPFO “Item of Interest” alert:
Attention Lamestream Media…
By Jeff Knox
Firearms Coalition
© Neal Knox Associates
To all of those “reporters” and pundits at ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, CNN, the New York Times and all the other Times, the Boston Globe, the Spokane Spokesman-Review, the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Arizona Republic, all of the Tribunes, Stars, and Ledgers;
Let me make something perfectly clear: The NRA is not the Gun Lobby. Neither is the NSSF, nor the GOA, nor even The Firearms Coalition, nor the hundreds of grassroots and activist organizations or the thousands of local gun clubs. I am the Gun Lobby. Whenever you talk about the Gun Lobby, you are talking about me. All those groups and entities work for me, but they are not me, and they do not necessarily speak for me. My power does not derive from my personal wealth nor financial support from the industry that serves me. My power comes from the fact that I am one of tens of millions Continue reading
UN Arms Trade Treat is a Bust…For Now
The UN conference on the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) has broken down and will not be submitting a draft of treaty to member nations and ABC News says “some diplomats and supporters blamed the United States for the unraveling of the monthlong negotiating conference.” Good job, United States! Amnesty International USA executive directory Suzanne Nossel was quoted: “This was stunning cowardice by the Obama administration, which at the last minute did an about-face and scuttled progress toward a global arms treaty.”
Always one to toot their own horns, the National Rifle Association (NRA) was quick to release an article, subtly entitled “NRA Stops U.N. Arms Trade Treaty.” While the gun rights lobbying group no doubt played a part in working against the measure, taking credit for the breakdown of the negotiations seems like a bit of a stretch given the hard work and grass-roots efforts of many gun rights organizations and individuals who helped spread the word, contacted representatives and did other behind-the-scenes work to protect American sovereignty when it comes to governing firearms.
This small victory, however, is certainly not cause to stop being vigilant when it comes to protecting gun rights. Conference chariman, Ambassador Roberto Garcia Moritan, a supporter of the treaty, said “we certainly are going to have a treaty in 2012.” This comes on the heels of several democratic senators attempting to slip gun control measures (S.A. 2575) into a cybersecurity bill that would make illegal the transfer or possession of ammunition feeding devices which hold more than 10 rounds. In case you couldn’t guess the list of “usual suspects” behind this measure, they include Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ), Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Jack Reed (D-RI), Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and Dianne Feinstein (D-CA).
If you’re already involved in organizations and activities to support your second amendment rights, keep up the great work. If not, there’s no time like the present to get started. Check out this link for a good starting point or visit the GunLink forums.
